Russian embassy sees funny side of Skripal attack as victims fight for their lives

Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister, said Russia had nothing to do with the attackSERGEI KARPUKHIN/REUTERS

Russia deployed one of its most potent cyberweapons to mock Britain over the Sergei Skripal affair yesterday: the Twitter account of its London embassy. In a dig at Theresa May’s assertion that it was “highly likely” that Moscow poisoned the former MI6 informer and his daughter, the account created the hashtag #HighlyLikelyRussia. It was accompanied by a short video that showed snow-covered vehicles during the recent “Beast from the East” blizzard that originated in Siberia, and the caption: “#HighlyLikelyRussia casted snow on Britain.”

Russia’s London embassy suggested other things to blame Russians for on Twitter

Twitter users joined in. “Bus No 14 delayed on Putney Bridge — #HighlyLikelyRussia,” wrote one. “Starbucks had run out of decaf this morning . . . grrr #HighlyLikelyRussia,” said another.